According to behavioural science, people don’t act rationally. eldar nurkovic/ Shutterstock

Stuart Mills, Manchester Metropolitan University

The UK government’s handling of the novel coronavirus pandemic has come under serious criticism, not just from citizens, but from leaders around the world. One of the reasons for this is because the government is using behavioural science to decide how to coordinate its response to the pandemic.


According to the principles of behavioural science, people don’t act rationally. But if we can understand people’s actions, and how they act irrationally, then we can intervene to change behaviour. Such interventions are typically called “nudges”. These can be powerful tools for influencing how people behave but with the added benefit of allowing them to make their own choices. Nudges usually offer positive reinforcement or indirect suggestions that aim to influence decision making and behaviour in people.

Some example nudges in response to the novel coronavirus include singing happy birthday while washing your hands or using funny alternative “handshakes”. These strategies emphasise the need for good hygiene, and create memorable rules of thumb which encourage people to participate.

If the promises of behavioural science can be believed, the UK government’s use of it would potentially minimise economic disruption while still tackling the crisis. This is because, in theory, behavioural science can achieve desirable behaviours without significantly impacting other day-to-day activities. However, the question is whether in practice behavioural science to help mitigate disaster.


Behavioural science came into prominence in the UK during the 2010-2015 Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government, which set up its own behavioural science advisory group called the Behavioural Insights Team (BIT) – sometimes known as the the Nudge Unit.






No clear definition of behavioural fatigue exists. But as best understood, behavioural fatigue is the idea that eventually people get bored of doing one thing and start engaging in other, sometimes undesirable, behaviours. For example, if people are placed in quarantine, they may initially be very compliant. But after some time, this compliance will wither away. And it may possibly happen – as the UK government claims – at precisely the moment it’s most needed.

However, in their letter, the 600 behavioural scientists express doubt that enough is known about behavioural fatigue for the government to be building policy around this hypothesis. They ask for the government to release its evidence supporting behavioural fatigue. Until such evidence materialises, the disparity in the UK’s response may continue to be met with criticism.


By contrast, a ban on the sale of a product – for example, limiting the number of toilet rolls a single customer can buy – would be a “hard paternalist intervention”. The intervention is increasing welfare (either for a individual, or the popoulation), and an individual can’t do much about it.



Stuart Mills, PhD Researcher, Manchester Metropolitan University


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